El Vez Is The Mexican Elvis—Retaining The Past And Moving Forward

Above is a picture from 1995 of El Vez.

El Vez bills himself as the Mexican Elvis.

This picture you see above was taken in Cincinnati at a bar called Sudsy Malone’s. This is establishment was a bar and laundromat. You could get a beer and have a shot of  whiskey. Bands played there on many nights of the week.

I saw this show. I can recall it 17 years after the fact. El Vez put on quite a concert. I am glad to see on his website that he is still touring.

This picture was taken by my longtime friend George DuChaine of Cincinnati, Ohio. George can take your wedding photos and often takes pictures of people on motorcycles.

George and I have been friends for at maybe 25 years. We keep in touch to this day.

I enjoyed my life when I often went to bars to see bands. I enjoy my life today when  I am more likely to stay home on a Saturday night.

I never imagined when I was seeing El Vez in 1995 that I would be writing about him on a blog in 2012.

Life is great for the friends and memories we keep, and it is great for the ways we move ahead.

The Bars That I Visited Most Often

What could be more important than the bars you hung out in when you were younger?

Not much.

There were three bars I spent the most time in when I lived in Cincinnati, Ohio. All my good bar days were in Cincinnati. I’ve lived in Houston for ten years and I don’t go to bars at all. In Cincinnati, I went all the time.

I enjoyed seeing my friends. And often I brought a book to read. Many places I went had a band playing and I rarely cared about the bands. I’m sure many of them were good. The local acts were often comprised of people I knew, and I’m sure they were good bands. It just never interested me. When the bands were playing and I could not talk to people, I would read my book.

There were three bars I visted most. One was a bar- laundry mat called Sudsy Malone’s. There were washers and dryers in the back of the house.  It was Short Vine street in Cincinnati. Below is a picture of Sudsy’s from the outside.  

And here is a picture from a show at Sudsy’s.

Now that’s entertainment!

Sudsy’s is now closed. The pictures came from a Sudsy’s Facebook group. 

Another bar I was a regular at was just down the street from Sudsy’s. It was, and still is, called Sub Galley. I can say in truth that I was for a time “Mayor” of this place. Below you see a picture of Chris the bartender. This picture is also from a Facebook group. 

I never could figure out the full story with Chris, but he was always a decent enough guy as far as I was concerned. Sub Galley was seen by some as a hangout for low lifes.  I think that view had some merit. 

The guy with the beard in the photo was Karl.

My last hangout was The Jockey Club in Newport, Kentucky. Newport is right across the Ohio River from Cincinnati. I’ve written about the Jockey Club before on the blog. It was the greatest punk rock club in all the world. The Jockey Club closed in 1988. The picture is from the club’s last night.

I like my life today and I miss my places from the past.

I hope you have some hangouts where you once spent your nights. It’s fun!…at least to some point in life it was fun.